The End Of Woolworths

With the imminent closure of Woolworths I thought I would share with you three things that I'll remember from the company.

REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS

I stayed with my relatives on an American air force base one Easter and they gave me Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.
I fell in love with them instantly.
And then I went home.
For years, I clamoured to have these chocolates again but I was unable to as the relatives moved back to the US.
Then - in around '97 or '98 - I was reading a Sunday paper and they had an article looking at new things in the shops. The picture which caught my eye was of these chocolates and it read 'only available in Woolworths'.
Guess where I went on my lunch break from college the next day?
I've only seen them in one other shop other than Woolworths and they were nearly double the price I pay in Woolworths. So, I will be able to buy them again - I will just have to pay a lot more than I would have paid in Woolies.

SHAWN MICHAELS

I met Shawn Michaels in Cardiff in 1993 and, eleven years later, I found out that he was going to be signing autographs at the Woolworths store in Newport.
I spent all morning in a queue inside the massive store waiting for him and the wait was rewarded when he signed my WrestleMania XX programme.
This memory is one of my favourites. I managed to overcome a few hurdles in my personal life to get there that day and meeting my favourite wrestler was a good end result.

DARTH VADER

Now, this is the best memory I will ever have of going to Woolworths.
I can recount the entire day, although I cannot remember whether it was in 1983 or 1984.
We were going on holiday and I needed to have an injection at the doctor surgery. As I hated needles (and still do to this day), my Dad struck a deal with me: if I took the injection and was a good boy I would have a surprise.
Bad deal!
I ended up letting everyone go in front of me in getting the shot and then, when it was my turn, I ran away.
The doctor and my parents were chasing me around the room, I was hiding under the chairs and tables and everything. I finally handed myself in and got the injection and then my Dad told me what the surprise was.
'You're going to meet Darth Vader in Woolworths'.
So, we went into town and there was a massive crowd in the Woolworths waiting for the arrival of the Dark Lord of the Sith.
When he did come out of the room I was sitting on my Dad's shoulders and Vader looked over at me on my Father's shoulders and pointed in my direction. I remember being scared to death for that short moment he had locked his attention to me.
He signed a Return of the Jedi book he was promoting.
I am guessing it was a regular person dressed up in a replica costume but, in the eyes of a four or five year old, it was real enough.

It's because of memories like these that I think Wooworths going down is one of the biggest tragedies to British culture.

Such a shame.